FOUNDER, HEDLEY & BENNETT

PROFESSOR, UCLA

ACTRESS/PRODUCER

CO-FOUNDER, FOOD FOREST NETWORK

EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, GENERAL MANAGER, LVRN

FOUNDER, INDIGO PROJECTS

PRINCIPAL, THIRD PLATEAU; FOUNDER, HIRSCH PHILANTHROPY PARNTERS

FOUNDER, HELEN'S WINES/JON & VINNY's

TECH EXECUTIVE/CO-FOUNDER, FOOD FOREST NETWORK

ACTRESS

FOUNDER, TRUE BOTANICALS; CO-FOUNDER, FOOD FOREST NETWORK

ACTRESS AND PRODUCER

PARTNER/CO-HEAD COMMERCIAL ENDORSEMENT AND BRANDING, ENDEAVOR

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CO-FOUNDER, FOOD FOREST NETWORK

Megan Downey is the founder of The Solar Collaborative, a nonprofit dedicated to advancing environmental justice and addressing energy inequality by providing clean energy solutions to underserved communities. 

Prior to her work in environmental justice, Megan managed the Compassionate Schools Project, the largest study ever conducted on the effects of contemplative practices on student well-being. As a manager, Megan is known for her ability to orchestrate collaboration among diverse stakeholders; she empowers individuals to contribute their unique expertise and creates synergies that enable teams to reach their full potential. Food Forest Network offers her the opportunity to integrate these ideals, enabling her to catalyze collaborative networks that elevate women’s voices and ensure their insights are made central to the problem-solving required to sustain our communities and our planet.

CO-FOUNDER, FOOD FOREST NETWORK

Hillary Peterson is founder of True Botanicals, one of the fastest-growing luxury beauty brands that is constantly looking for new ways to improve not only the formulas but also the way in which they source ingredients and manufacture. True Botanicals, is a boundary-pushing operation that is inspiring change in the beauty industry by proving that the most safe and sustainable products can be equally effective.

Hillary’s most recent focus has been on investing even more resources into where and how the ingredients that make up her industry-defining formulas are grown, supporting regenerative farming practices whenever possible. Through her work, Hillary has become aware of demand for regenerative farmed ingredients within the beauty industry, and Food Forest Network provides an opportunity to extend her impact beyond the beauty industry in support of girls and women around the world. 

CO-FOUNDER, FOOD FOREST NETWORK

Marta Kosarchyn is a longtime tech executive who has served in senior leadership roles in large and small Silicon Valley companies, including HP, Intuit, and most recently Khan Academy, where she served as CTO for the past five years, supporting learning on a global scale.  

Marta’s success has been grounded in her open embrace of bringing feminine, collaborative qualities to complement traditional hierarchical business leadership. Her participation in women’s circles has enabled her to appreciate the power of women’s voices and perspectives in accelerating learning, growth, and impact. Food Forest Network brings together Marta’s passions for enabling continual learning and for bringing women’s voices to bear on the work of restoring the health of the earth and all of its inhabitants, especially those most acutely impacted by the combined effects of climate change and poverty.

BOARD MEMBER, FOOD FOREST NETWORK

Susan Hirsch is a Principal at Third Plateau and Founder of Hirsch Philanthropy Partners where she guides philanthropists and the team to think bigger and bolder – to continually imagine new possibilities that create lasting impact. Before launching Hirsch, Susan was founding Executive Director of the Mimi and Peter Haas Fund, where she set up a new philanthropic model to expand early childhood education. She was previously Bay Area Executive Director of Strive for Five, a national campaign to promote community volunteerism and charitable giving, and a public affairs strategist for McKesson.

Susan is proud to serve on the Board of Directors for the Center for Investigative Reporting, the Advisory Committee of the UCSF Memory & Aging Center, the Board of Trustees for the Jewish Home & Senior Living Foundation and as a board member and officer of several foundations. She is an active member in numerous national philanthropic networks.

Seed Savers Network is a national, grassroots organization dedicated to preserving agricultural biodiversity, promoting sustainable farming practices, and supporting food security throughout Kenya. Founded in 2009, Seed Savers Network has established more than 50 community seed banks and created over 850 intensive kitchen gardens. They currently facilitate an online seed exchange platform and support a network of more than 76,000 farmers throughout the country. Seed Savers Network trains Seed Ambassadors at their training hall and demonstration farm in Gilgil and uses a farmer-to-farmer training model to teach regenerative farming practices and food sovereignty ideas to smallholder farmers throughout the country.

The International Centre for Evaluation and Development (ICED) is the first Africa-based international think-tank that combines research and innovation with extensive practical experience in evaluation and development. ICED plays a leading role in food systems thinking, leadership, impact network, and capacity building in Africa and engages in cutting-edge research and collaborations with global institutions around the world.

Working across Africa, Asia, and Central America, the Horticulture Innovation Lab is a global research network that advances fruit and vegetable innovations, empowering smallholder farmers to earn more income while better nourishing their communities. Funded by USAID, the Horticulture Innovation Lab is part of the Feed the Future network, which draws on the expertise of 21 top U.S. colleges and universities to tackle some of the world’s greatest challenges in agriculture, food security, and nutrition.

Their global research network works with and promotes local leadership to advance horticulture and social innovations, empowering small-scale producers to earn more income while better nourishing their communities.

Mary Johnson is internationally recognized for her ability to build regenerative agricultural supply ecosystems that transcend boundaries and meet the needs of farmers and their communities. She has orchestrated the coordination of a global collaboration, empowering women and indigenous communities through regenerative agriculture and implemented award-winning innovations that enhanced farmer profitability and contributed to supply chain risk reduction and greenhouse gas mitigation.

Blair Tyler Petersis a multidisciplinary artist whose research-based work addresses gender inequity by honoring the achievements of women both past and present with projects incorporating painting, ceramics, and textiles. By combining material and research, Blair’s work utilizes contemporary forms to communicate the rich history of female arts. Her work advocates for gender equality and emphasizes the urgency for women across the globe to speak out for the protection and expansion of their rights and freedoms.

She believes that creating a self-sustaining infrastructure (a circle-network) in the most climate-impacted communities can provide women the opportunity to adopt feminine responses and solutions to local issues including education, food security, and climate change.